Developing the Next Generation of Rwanda Leaders

Presentation Topic: Rwandan Scholarship Program: Together Building our Shared Future

The Rwanda government’s Vision 2020 initiative strives to reach a middle-income economy by 2020 through investments in the agricultural sector and development of human capacity with the appropriate skill levels, disciplinary depth and entrepreneurial and leadership experience. The College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources (CASNR) at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL) is very fortunate to be partnering with an innovative and forward-thinking foundation to assist Rwanda achieve its Vision 2020 initiative and become a model for African agricultural development. In 2015, CASNR welcomed our first Cohort of scholars to UNL, followed by an additional 49 in 2016 and 50 in 2017 and 2018 for a total of 155 scholars. These scholars will be joined by an additional cohort of 45 students in the Fall of 2019.

All CUSP Scholars pursue a Bachelor of Science in Integrated Science that has a foundation of conservation agriculture, entrepreneurship and leadership, and innovative thinking as well as an area of concentration that is individualized to align with each scholar’s career interest. The student’s in-country internship and capstone course connect to relevant issues or problems of importance to Rwanda’s agriculture sector. Experiential learning experiences, two summers in the US and the third summer in Rwanda, are also integrated into the curriculum to provide students with authentic experiences that are applicable to real world problems. The students’ degree programs are specifically designed to provide relevance to Rwanda’s agricultural sector and the country’s goal of building resilience into their agricultural ecosystems.

Speaker Bio:

Dr. Tiffany Heng-Moss currently serves as Dean for the College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Since joining the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL) faculty in 2001, Dr. Heng-Moss has developed and taught both undergraduate and graduate courses along with providing leadership for the development and implementation of multiple academic degree programs in the College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources. She is passionate about teaching; focuses on student success; is excited about agriculture and science; and motivates students to want to learn.

Through her research, Dr. Heng-Moss has facilitated development of improved integrated pest management approaches and germplasm for chinch bugs and aphids affecting grasses and soybean.

Dr. Heng-Moss currently provides leadership for the NebraskaSCIENCE Program of Excellence grant, which is a partnership initiative among Arts and Sciences, Education and Human Sciences and CASNR; contributes to IANR’s science literacy program that seeks to integrate educational programming on food, energy, water and sustainability within the UNL undergraduate curriculum; has provided leadership for the development of the undergraduate Life Sciences curriculum; and has partnered with Nebraska schools to map food, energy, and water programming to the K-12 curricula.

She has received several teaching awards, including the USDA National Award for Excellence in College and University Teaching in the Food and Agricultural Sciences, the Entomological Society of America Distinguished Achievement Award, Gamma Sigma Delta Teaching Award, and the University of Nebraska Outstanding Teaching and Instructional Creativity Award (OTICA). She has authored/co-authored over 85 refereed teaching and research publications and secured over $50 million in teaching/outreach grants and $9 million in research funds.